Kugelblitz
Contents
Description
The Flakpanzer IV "Kugelblitz" is the third variant of the Flakpanzer IV self-propelled anti-aircraft gun family. The Panzer IV medium tank chassis is combined with a newly designed oscillating turret to provide complete protection for the crews. This turret was completely enclosed, with overhead protection and full traverse. The disruption caused by Allied bombing efforts prevented mass production from taking place.
Introduced in Update 1.43, the Flakpanzer IV "Kugelblitz" is an extremely competitive vehicle. Its twin-mounted 30 mm Maschinenkanone 103/38 provides high destructive power against enemy air and ground targets. The main armament is fast-firing and precise, requiring only one or two shells to bring down even a bomber. Players can also equip armour-piercing ammunition belts to target enemy ground units. This machine can quickly destroy a column of enemy targets with well-executed flanking manoeuvres.
General info
Survivability and armour
The Kugelblitz has high armour values compared to most SPAA, but the armour will not protect it against the main calibre guns of tanks at the battle rating. The survivability is quite good, the crew is well spaced and numerous, and the ammunition is unlikely to detonate. The Kugelblitz has excellent protection against strafing runs from enemy aircraft, although some aircraft cannons may penetrate the 10 mm hull armour and cause an engine fire.
Since the ball turret is enclosed and separated from the hull, the Kugelblitz can still operate its cannons after a successful penetration of the hull.
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 80 mm | 30 mm | 20 mm | 10 mm |
| Turret | 30 mm Turret housing 20 mm Turret ball |
30 mm Turret housing 20 mm Turret ball |
30 mm Turret housing 20 mm Turret ball |
20 mm |
Notes:
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 43 | 8 | 25 | 426 | 572 | 17.04 | 22.88 |
| Realistic | 39 | 8 | 265 | 300 | 10.6 | 12 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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The Kugelblitz has a comparatively low gun traverse speed when not upgraded, so the Horizontal Drive and Elevation Mechanism modules are quite important. Another very useful modification is the M.Gr. ammo belt, which almost completely composed of high-explosive shells and helps to increase damage dealt to enemy aircraft. The two Pz.Gr. modules allow the vehicle to better engage enemy ground forces. These belts contain more high-penetration rounds than high-explosive ones, and increase the vehicle's effectiveness against armoured targets. Still, they will not be able to penetrate most tanks frontally at this tier, and are better suited for engaging lightly-armoured vehicles.
Armaments
Main armament
| 30 mm MK103/38 (x2) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 1,200 (100) | 450 | -7°/+80° | ±180° | N/A | 52.8 | 73.1 | 88.8 | 98.2 | 104.5 | 13.00 | 11.50 | 10.60 | 10.00 |
| Realistic | 35.7 | 42.0 | 51.0 | 56.4 | 60.0 | |||||||||
Ammunition
- Default: AP-I · HEI-T
- M.Gr.: HEI-T · HEI-T · HEI-T · AP-I
- Pz.Gr.: AP-I · AP-I · AP-I · HEI-T
- Pz.Gr. H: HVAP-T · HEI-T · HEI-T
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | ||||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| HEI-T | 7 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | |
| AP-I | 58 | 55 | 44 | 33 | 25 | 19 | |
| HVAP-T | 77 | 74 | 61 | 47 | 37 | 29 | |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| HEI-T | 920 | 0.33 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 84 | 79° | 80° | 81° | ||||
| AP-I | 800 | 0.5 | - | - | - | 47° | 56° | 65° | ||||
| HVAP-T | 960 | 0.36 | - | - | - | 66° | 70° | 72° | ||||
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 6 (+6) | 0 (+12) | No |
Note:
- Ammunition is modeled as 12 magazines of 100 rounds.
Usage in battles
Overview:
The Kugelblitz is a dedicated AA, however the guns do have decent penetration and the Kugelblitz has some armour and survivability, so targeting enemy ground vehicles is a possibility. However, air targets should still be the main focus of the Kugelblitz. Due to the survivability and firepower, the Kugelblitz is best placed near the frontlines in case it needs to support a teammate against an enemy ground vehicle, but it should not be directly in view of enemy tanks.
Tips:
The Kugelblitz is best used as a second or third spawn, because aircraft will not spawn at the beginning of the match. Do not engage aircraft too early, as you will only expose yourself. Begin firing at no more than 1-1.5 km range for the best effect. Always watch out for multiple aircraft, as one may hit you with bombs or rockets while you are distracted. The fast firing 30 mm guns are extremely potent, and will quickly dispatch most air targets after a few hits, even against heavy fighters and bombers. It is a good idea to learn the weak spots of enemy ground vehicles you will commonly face near the Kugelblitz's BR, as knowing these will allow the Kugelblitz to deal maximum damage.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- High rate of fire for a 30 mm cannon
- Fast turret rotation speed
- Very good at taking out other SPAA or lightly-armoured vehicles
- Average movement speed
- Is closed-top unlike other open-top SPAAs, protecting it from lots of strafing that could otherwise be fatal
- HVAP round can penetrate 77 mm, improving efficacy against other tanks
Cons:
- Although having thick armour for an SPAA, it's still only a Panzer IV hull and not enough to stop any kind of tank shell at its rank, or fire from .50 cal HMGs
- Long reload time
- HVAP belt is 2/3 HE rounds, reducing effectiveness
History
Design
The genesis of the Kugelblitz can be traced back to a precursor project involving a spherical Flak turret. Initially conceived to bolster the anti-aircraft defenses of German submarines, the turret boasted twin 30 mm cannons and was developed in early 1944 by Alkett, a firm renowned for its contributions to self-propelled anti-aircraft (SPAA) vehicle construction. Despite its promising design, the spherical Flak turret never found favor with the German Navy. Engineers at Alkett recognized the potential of the turret's oblate form and weapon configuration, opting to repurpose it for a new SPAA endeavor. The groundwork for the Kugelblitz was laid, with development commencing in late 1944. A Panzer IV chassis was selected as the platform for integrating the turret. However, a pivotal modification involved fitting a Tiger I turret ring onto the Panzer IV to accommodate the larger spherical turret. This adaptation underscored the approach of the engineers involved. Despite progress in development, including the construction of five prototypes, the Kugelblitz never underwent formal testing. Plans for mass production were also thwarted by the relentless Allied bombing campaigns targeting German factories during the latter stages of the war (1944-1945).
Development
The development of the Kugelblitz relies on a previous project, a spherical Flak turret, designed to provide German submarines with adequate anti-aircraft defence capability. The oblate turret featured twin 30 mm cannons and was originally developed in early 1944 by the firm Alkett also responsible for the construction of SPAA vehicles. The turret was however never adopted by the German navy. This led the engineers of the firm to reuse the same type of design it for the needs of the new SPAA project. Development started of the Kugelblitz in late 1944. The chassis chosen to integrate the turret remained a Panzer IV. The main difference was that a Tiger I turret ring was fitted on the Pz.IV to accommodate the large turret. Five prototypes were built but never tested. Mass production was even planned but never happened due to the intense Allied bombings of German factories from 1944 to 1945.
Combat usage
The Kugelblitz was never approved for service, as its development was not yet completed when the war ended in Europe. Several prototypes briefly saw combat during the Battle of Berlin or in engagements throughout Germany.
| Archive of the in-game description | |
|---|---|
|
A continuation of the line of German AA vehicles based on the Pz.IV tank. It was the first AA vehicle to have a fully enclosed turret. Only two were ever built, and they may not have been used in combat. Both of the AA vehicles that were released ended up in the anti-air artillery training battalion stationed at the Ohrdruf training ground in Thuringia. | |
Media
- Skins
- Videos
See also
- Vehicles equipped with the same chassis
- Other vehicles of similar configuration and role
External links
- [Devblog] Flakpanzerkampfwagen IV "Kugelblitz"
- [Wikipedia] Kugelblitz
- [Tanks Encyclopedia] Leichte Flakpanzer IV 3 cm "Kugelblitz"
| Germany anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Wheeled | Sd.Kfz.222 |
| Half-track | Sd.Kfz.251/21 · Sd.Kfz. 6/2 |
| Flakpanzer IV | Wirbelwind · Ostwind · Ostwind II · Kugelblitz · Zerstörer 45 |
| Other Flakpanzers | Flakpanzer I · Flakpanzer 38 · Flakpanzer 341 |
| Wiesel AWC | Wiesel 1A4 · Ozelot |
| Radar SPAAG | Gepard · Gepard 1A2 |
| Missile SPAA | FlaRakPz 1 · FlaRakRad |
